Tea Staining Techniques for Cabinets

by Rochelle Leggett

Different teas create different looks for your cabinets.

One of the choices you must make when working with wood is the type of finish you'll apply. With the wide variety of stains and finishes available today, it's no chore finding a method and color that suits your tastes and abilities. Though you have commercially available choices, making your own stain can be surprisingly simple. For instance, tea is easy to work with, inexpensive and environmentally friendly. Applying a tea stain to your kitchen cabinets is unusual and easy, and will make your kitchen one-of-a-kind.

Tea Stains

Making a tea stain requires only water and tea. Essentially, you just brew tea. Bags or loose-leaf tea work equally well. Most stains add pigments to the wood, but tea only adds a small amount of pigment and is fairly subtle. The major effect of a tea stain on wood is at the chemical level; the tea adds chemicals called tannins into the wood, which alters the wood's chemistry. Different teas react differently and create different colors with the same type of wood, so experimenting with different varieties of tea is a good idea when deciding how to stain your cabinets. Test on an inconspicuous area or use a plain piece of wood that is the same species as your cabinets for testing.

Iron Stains

Iron stains are another type of homemade stain with interesting results. The color if this stain can range from a silver gray to a dark brown, depending upon the wood you use. To make iron-based stain, soak an oil-free steel wool pad that has been pulled apart in vinegar overnight or longer. The problem with this kind of stain is that it works best when the iron can react to tannins in the wood, and not all woods have high enough tannin content. Tea stains add tannins to wood, and so the two stains work well together to create a dark stain on any kind of wood. Just apply the tea stain first, let it dry, and apply the iron stain on top.

Preparing Kitchen Cabinets

If your kitchen cabinets are unfinished, then all that is necessary to prepare for staining is for you to make sure that they are sanded and clean. However, if you are refinishing cabinets, you have some work to do. Cooking deposits grease on cabinets, so you should clean them thoroughly. Sanding removes any nicks or scratches as well as the protective coating and, in the case of painted cabinets, the paint. The problem with an already finished cabinet is that the tea may react with the current chemicals in an unexpected way, so you should test the stain in an inconspicuous area first. If your cabinets already have a dark stain, the tea stain may not show at all.

Staining Cabinets

Tea stain can be applied in the same general way as any other kind of stain. Use a natural bristle brush or a rag to wipe the stain onto the wood. Apply it in one direction, using parallel lines and overlap your marks. Use thin coats avoid letting the tea pool on the wood; you can always add more coats later for a stronger effect. Because tea stain is water based, you may need to sand between coats, as water-based stains can raise the grain of the wood, which is undesirable. Let your last coat of stain dry for a full 24 hours, then protect your work with a clear finish, such as polyurethane. The stain itself is not sufficient to protect your cabinets.

About the Author

Rochelle Leggett has bachelor's degrees in biopsychology and English and a Master of Library and Information Science. She has been writing for over 15 years and was first published in 2000. She has been employed in academic settings as a librarian and an archivist.

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